uhf

Gday,
What do you want it for and were will you be using it?
If your going bush (Central Aust.) you need HF or Sat phone for emergencies, UHF is only any good between vehicles over a couple of kms.
You can pick up HFs fairly cheap now.
Hope that helps a bit.

Cheers

Hi Mate,as hairy said depends on where/ what you are going to use it for.I have uhf uniden but the main use for that is as hairy said to talk between us while traveling. Gme is a better brand than uniden myn is only a cheapie but thats all I use it for. If we go outback we hire a sat phone to take with us piece of mind especially with a 2 year old.I dont even have scan on mine but is about 2 year old no probs.Not up to date with the hf units.Sorry can't be more of a help to you.You will probably get some replies well into the afternoon.Stand by sure somone will. Take Care Vitara

You mention UHF, then HF.. Dont confuse the 2, they are nothing alike...

Good UHF Units:
GME or ICOM. Good car to car, or local wheeling, but not really suited to long distande maydays.
Prestige have the best prices and they overnight to your door.

HF/Satphone:
A MUST if your heading remote outback. Simple as that. If you cant afford to buy, hire one.
Telstat hire them out they are in Melbourne.

hi there the uhf radio i recomend to you is icom ic 4000 its great unit verry well made and has lots of features around about $400 cheaper than electropone and better radio there radios can run at aprox 50 if you want, have to do this with soft ware through your comp. i run standard 5 watts you can mod the mic wich then sounds like a power mic nice and loud and clear.

Have a look at the GME TX3400, this unit has a remote head and is easily installed with the main part under the dash or seat and the head located somewhere convienient for use. it has both group and open scans as well as duplex operation for extended distance.
A good UHF radio can transmit up to 10klms in simplex mode and hundreds of klms if it can find a repeater in duplex mode.
If you do intend to get off the beaten track then hire a Sat phone , it's worth the dollars.
We have travelled all the remote parts of Aus and have found that the UHF left on scan will pick people up in the most unlikely places. Never had to used the Sat phone, and do not because of the charges. However we did hire one. Our CDMA mobile was handy for the larger outback townshowever.

We have 2 Uniden uhf radio's (1 in car,1 in caravan). Had no trouble with them on our 2 yr trip around oz.
We took a personal EPIRB unit ( about $200) in the glove box for any extreme emergencies, have not needed to use it yet !!. Will work towards an HF radio on next trip.

Hi GC

Yes, depends on how deep the pocket is.

We have a TX 4400 UHF and are quite happy with it.
We also have a TX 610 hand held UHF for if any of us go bushwalking, exploring fishing so we can keep in contact with the campsite and for reversing the 4BY back on the traytop camper we have.

Try the GME website
http://www.gme.net.au/land/uhf_cb_transceivers.php

Cya
Tripp'n
:)

At vks737.on.net there is a pdf download (PDF Tab) on Communication Method Comparisons. Might be worth a read if you are not up with the various options.
I use the Icom 400 pro UHF - seems a very good quality unit to me with lots a features, upgradability and a good overall performer. The GME 3400 has similar specs I'm told. Prestige are good on pricing and delivery but don't mix and match antennas on their specials. Bought mine locally (SA) so I could get the antenna I wanted. Price about the same.

Hf and UHF are quite different radios. UHF is short range, useful for talking to others on the road. Their range can be extended if you can access a repeater. I use a GME 3400 and recommend them. HF radios are for long distance communication, Australia wide. Really useful if going off the beaten track. These radios can be bought or hired. The advantage of HF over satphones is that you can use them as much or as little as you like without incurring a huge bill to pay when you come home.

What car is it going in? If you are after a nice small unit with lots of power get the UNI013, that's what I have and I am very happy with it. You can detatch the face and put the actual unit where ever you want and then the head where ever you want as well and it's very small

As everyone says, UHF and HF are for different purposes, and the size & fit depends on the unit & vehicle. I decided recently on GME and got a TX3400 off eBay, 2/3 costs of new price. Very happy so far. If you want new, concur with above that prestige are the best. Have a think on the antenna also and the gain you want/need. In basic terms, high gain goes further but keeps the signal power toward the horizon. Lower gain travels less distance but sends the signal a fair way vertical also. Consider, hilly or flat country. Tonester

Gooday,
Just had GME TX3400 fitted this week in Bne, don't know where you are. Remote head, programmed Xtra 10 channels, no extra, AE4012/7K2 antennae. Mounted remote head on w/Screen above mirror, extra $ for couple of leads & brackets,for antennae etc cost me $719-00 fitted, very professional job. Ok base price for set was $459-00 $30 more than on the net, but personalised service & some good tuition for somebody who doesen't have a lot of techno knowledge, the extra $30 was well worth it. Also got TX610 $99-00.
Cheers ,
Boroma 604.

Believe me GME Electrophone is a far better UHF radio than Uniden. Apart from being an Aussie designed and assembled radio (Sydney) they design it with quality in mind and not cheap price. Just ensure you get the right antenna, they have a pdf brochure online explaining the difference between 3db, 6db and 9db, which should give you an idea what is best for you. If you are into serious bush bashing make sure it's spring loaded and is robuts, such as the white fibreglass units. If the white one is too thick and distracting then a black skinnt 6db would be a good idea. Don't go for the little rubber duck cos it won't have the range like the standard antennas have. Make sure you also get the new stainless steel clamps that are perfectly smooth fitting on the roo bar.

As to which of the 3 GME radios, well they all have same performace, just each have their own little features that you have to decide if you want or not. Don't forget to ask the dealer to have the Police channels programmed in on the TX4400 if you buy it cos it's free from factory when ordered and not off the dealer's shelf. Personally I like the TX3600 ;)

ANY of the mainstream brands of UHF radios are suitable, be it Uniden, GME, or Icom. It gets down to what you are prepared to pay for a unit with the type of features you require.

Considerations such as compactness (where will it fit in the vehicle), the ability to scan all 40 channels, or selected scan (some channels only) and perhaps a selcall feature is all you need think about.

A recent test of all brands did not identify any clear "winner".
For instance, the GME "outperformed" the Uniden in clarity by 2 klms in a distance test. Hardly anything to get excited about.

The UHF radio is very handy to have on board, not only in communicating to other parties within your convoy, but also with other travellers in the vicinity.
Out bush, ANY unit that has a good quality aerial attached will have no trouble transmitting and receiving over a 15-20 km range, excluding repeater channels.

If you cannot justify the cost of a "fixed" unit, you can also consider a hand held unit which will provide some if not all of basic communication needs.

As far as anything else is concerned and unless you wish to obtain other information that HF may provide, IMHO a Sat Phone, owned or hired, would have to be the best choice for ultimate communication needs.